Do you still use CDs for DJing? Do you prefer the idea of playing music from CDs, USB or Streaming? For those on tight budgets, wanting to prepare to play on industry standard decks like the Pioneer CDJNexus 2000, then read on.
To DJ stand alone using individual players without a laptop, you have to pay a premium. Sure you can buy more budget USB capable decks such as the Numark NDX500 (approx £175.00 each) , but for the latest Pioneer USB players like the XDJ700 you need around £600 per deck.
If you want to take your DJing more seriously, you quickly realise that many venues have two Pioneer CDJ Nexus2000's at around £2000 each. This is unobtainable for most people and can leave you nervous about using them live. So what are your options to prepare for playing on this type of technology Well for stand alone set ups, you may consider Pioneer CDJ's from the past, such as the CDJ1000mk2 or 800mk2. Both are currently being sold on Ebay for around £100 each). They may not have some of the features found on modern decks, but you do get Pioneer quality, reliability, full sized jog wheels and full sized tempo adjusters. Importantly the core controls and layout will feel familiar when you face a CDJNexus2000. They will read MP3s, WAV's and AIFF files, which covers all of the filetypes you need in
2020.
You have to accept that your format will be CD and you will need a way to burn CDs from your computer. You can pick up USB CD burners from as little as £12.00 on Ebay and you will get around 80 minutes of music on one CD.
Let me know your thoughts on old verses new Pioneer CDJs or whether you found them useful to prepare for using modern players such as the CDJ Nexus2000.
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